23 August 2018

The Place was Built With a Magical Plan

I should admit that this year the Gazette’s anniversary
snuck up on me. The result, I suspect, of life getting in the way of plans, of
which I actually had some of this year, and time speeding up on me the older I
get. So, I decided to take a stroll down memory lane to see where we’ve been
and everything that the Gazette has given to me, in order to provide me with a
little insight.

From our earliest days, we have been about providing
information that enrichens the Walt Disney World experience. The reviews of
attractions, shows, tours, meals, restaurants, or how the parks are put
together have been meant to help you plan and have the most fun you can have in
the parks and resorts. The little details that further a story, give us a sense
of time and place, or are just fun nods have always been explored in order to
provide you with ways to enhance your trips or be a show off for friends and
family. Photo safaris have always been a way to showcase something you should
be taking note of, but doesn’t necessarily need a long-winded, wordy
explanation from me. The historical elements are for those who, like myself, want
to know as much as they can even if they cannot experience what once was around
the Vacation Kingdom.

If you’ve caught on to a theme here, it is that the Main
Street Gazette has always been here for, and because of, you. You are the
reason I wake up and scouring through books or photographs, looking for that
one story that will resonate, that will mean something to at least one of you
out there.

The Gazette has been home to other writers over the years,
and I loved getting their perspective on how they view Walt Disney World. Not
because it lessened my burden, believe me it did not, but because I hoped it
would be helpful to someone who didn’t always see things the way I do and,
perhaps, another writer shared their perspective.

Of course, we’ve had our bumps over the years. If I’m being
honest, some of the fictitious short, short stories I wrote in those early
years were in the hopes that someone at Disney would take notice and ask me to
pick up a pen for their blog, children’s books, publications, or some other
endeavor. As much as I loved those stories, they were there for me and quickly fell
by the wayside because I had lost track of what really mattered to me and what
was at the heart of the Gazette’s mission: you all and your experiences.

I cannot imagine where I would be personally without all of
you. The Gazette’s never been the place where everyone comes to gather,
comment, and discuss, but it has brought me so many friends that I am so
incredibly thankful for. You have sent me emails and messages letting me know
what matters to you and thanking me for all that I do, but it really truly
should be me thanking you. Sometimes I get on a soapbox, with and without
reason, sometimes I’m away dealing with illness, and sometimes I get lost in
the weeds of blather around a microscopic blip in Disney history, but you
always come back and are always encouraging. Without each of you, there is no
Main Street Gazette. So, with all sincerity, thank you for coming back again
and again, and never stop letting me know how I can create a better experience
for you!